Ignoring the fact that marijuana is not physically addictive I'll agree that it's a public health issue...so let's treat it as such and instead of locking people up and destroying their lives with a criminal record, treat them for it...you know. Like Portugal.

orbister:lewismarktwo:Which has nothing to do with cannabis itself and everything to do with draconian laws and money grubbing insurance companies. /but you knew that already

Unless, of course, the drug affected his reactions or thinking and led to the shock (he can't have been electrocuted, can he?). Suppose the PP had written

I have a friend that was a regular drinker. A few months ago he was on the job and got electrocuted, the tested him and he popped positive for alcohol. Fired on the spot and lost a $1,800/wk job, couldn't make payments on his car so he drove it till they found him and repossessed it. No money to pay the bills either so now him, his wife and 2 children live in the inlaws' basement.

would you be saying "It's all a conspiracy by insurance companies" or would you be saying "Dude probably shouldn't have tried do electrical work while drunk"?

They don't know if he was high or not. They don't care if he was high or not. They only care that they don't have to pay out because he tested positive for THC metabolites. It doesn't take a conspiracy, it's just a legal excuse they use to renig on their obligation and raise rates.

Tenatra:Rapmaster2000: One time I smoked the pot. Now, I'm just a journalist. I'm broke. People don't respect me.

It could happen to you.

I have a friend that was a regular smoker. A few months ago he was on the job and got electrocuted, the drug screened him and he popped positive for weed. Fired on the spot and lost a $1,800/wk job, couldn't make payments on his car so he drove it till they found him and repossessed it. No money to pay the bills either so now him, his wife and 2 children live in the inlaws' basement.

Which has nothing to do with cannabis itself and everything to do with draconian laws and money grubbing insurance companies. /but you knew that already

I smoke weed every day because I was an angry mother farker and it wasn't very fun being angry at everything all the time (not like physically violent angry, just incredibly frustrated and shouty). Weed came along and I mellowed out a ton. Even though I smoke everyday, if I can't for some reason it's not a huge deal. The only withdrawal effects I notice are a decrease in my appetite (the horror, the horror!) and I'm slightly more irritable. That's it. I've been smoking multiple times a day, every day (with a few breaks here and there) for around 7 years. My memory is still as sharp as ever, and I could be high as a kite and you would never be able to tell as long as I had eye drops. I know so many daily smokers, none have ever even thought about going to rehab. We're all employed, motivated people who just happen to like smoking weed. Everyone in rehab for marijuana addiction is there because it was court mandated, no one needs rehab for weed. I've helped opiate addicts in withdrawal, that enables me to laugh at anyone who even remotely suggests that weed is somehow horribly physically addictive.

/tl; dr: pots not addictive and anyone who says that it is, is a blindingly moronic buffoon.

timujin:wow, your anecdotal evidence is extremely compelling. Now, how about those people who work better when smoking regularly? Does that anecdotal evidence cancel your out?

I almost failed my Sophomore year in high-school. Over the summer I took stock of my life, and realized I was headed for a lifetime of flipping burgers. So I did the only thing I could think of to get me out of my jam. For the rest of high-school I would come home from school, get really really baked and do my homework. I pulled my grades up, did well on the SAT and went off to college and got a degree.

titwrench:titwrench:People aren't addicted to gambling or most of your other examples they're just weak willed. Anyone that tells you you are addicted to shopping or gambling or any of that other stupid shiat is going to charge you to fix yourself.

I'm guessing that you're a troll, but it's time for some education. "Addiction" is a medical term in the field known as psychiatry. If you start talking about addiction, it implies a medical context. You're correct that psychiatrists generally don't consider behavior to be a true addiction, but you're completely wrong that it's "weak will". They are considered "impulse control disorders", which also includes things like fire setting and compulsive hair plucking.

To anticipate your next argument, the diagnosis is not an excuse to participate in the behaviors, it's a way to standardize treatment. Patients aren't to blame for their conditions (psychiatric or somatic), but they can be held responsible if they don't get treatment. If you have a broken arm, it's your job to get it fixed. It's no different for psychiatric conditions.

sgnilward:Just because marijuana is not physically addictive doesn't mean there aren't risks...

For example, a pot head without weed is just as annoying, perhaps more so than a dry drunk.

Further, if you need to consume a mind altering chemical to start or get through your day, there are deeper problems that need to be addressed.

One last thing, just a bunch, really... What are the depression rates amongst habitual pot users? And it is NOT a treatment for the condition either.

Don't get me wrong, I'm mostly pro-pot, but don't bullshiat yourself or others into thinking there are no I'll effects of habitual use.

I beg to differ. I have seen my ex in a condition where a few hours without booze had him shaking and puking. DTs can be fatal. Potheads are annoying when they can't score but only because they keep going on about it. Not in the same league by a long shot.

lewismarktwo:Which has nothing to do with cannabis itself and everything to do with draconian laws and money grubbing insurance companies. /but you knew that already

Yea it didn't have anything to do with it. No way in hell was he going to play with wires while he was high, he smoked after work to wind down while he played games. His supervisor saw him get zapped so a report had to be filed.

/I don't think I've ever met an electrician that didn't have a story or two about getting zapped.

LovingTeacher:titwrench: They aren't addicted they just lack willpower

I don't know if you're trolling or not but addiction is not about willpower just like depression is not about willpower. If you're an addict it is very difficult to stop the behavior you are addicted to. Maybe talk to some Dr.s who have treated addicts or some addicts themselves. That said MJ is very close to non-addictive, I know many drunks and addicts and I could only name two MJ addicts off the top of my head. One got clean, relapsed then got clean again. She was just like any addict, once she fell off the wagon she went whole hog, stoned every day at work at home just before she went to sleep, just after she woke up. The other never got clean and died in an unrelated motorcycle accident, his friends said about him, "He didn't have a problem, he just liked to smoke, he smoked all day, every day". I'm sorry, he was a great guy, but that is a problem.

I'm not trolling in the slightest. People aren't addicted to gambling or most of your other examples they're just weak willed. Anyone that tells you you are addicted to shopping or gambling or any of that other stupid shiat is going to charge you to fix yourself.

Here's the thing. There absolutely is such a thing as responsible recreational use. Just as there is responsible consumption of alcohol. Somebody has a drink at Happy hour with the guys from work, maybe has a bowl watching football on a Sunday.

There is also such a thing as addicts who haven't worked in a decade. Booze, weed, fake weed...the actual substance might not matter. Addicts gonna use, man. Legalization makes folks not have to fear a criminal record. This is certainly a good thing, but it's probably not going to change the world of a {substance} addict.

Going to rehab for marijuana addiction = getting caught by a "random" drug test at work and given the option of going to rehab or getting fired. Who seriously goes because they're actually "addicted" to weed?

orbister:timujin: wow, your anecdotal evidence is extremely compelling. Now, how about those people who work better when smoking regularly?

Ah yes. Those people. They certainly think they work better, just as they think they screw better. Their colleagues and partners, however, will generally tell you something rather different.

Not if it's work that requires any thought or initiative. Actually, with some really boring, repetitive, mindless tasks, a stoned person will concentrate better, and not get bored. But if they encounter a problem, it will take them longer to solve it.

david_gaithersburg:I have personally overdosed on marijuana several dozen times.

I overdosed on pot brownies once. A friend of mine had tried one from the same batch the day before and complained that it was really weak. So I tried one, waited about 40-45 minutes and didn't feel anything. So I ate quite a few more thinking they were duds.

Soon after, the first brownie started to kick in. So I knew I was fuqd. When the other brownies started to kick in all at once, it turned into a very bad high really fast. I became really fidgety ... I couldn't stay still but then I couldn't move around. Then I thought I was stuck in a Matrix like alternate reality and somehow I was stuck in a perpetual time loop. And of course, somebody had slowed time way down to make it worse. I concluded that this is what Purgatory must be like.

And then it all went away. No psychotic break, no organ failure, no murdering my neighbors. Just a really bad trip and a lesson to wait two hours before calling a laced brownie a dud.

Funny thing is, I've smoked with friends before trying to get as high as we possibly could. It was nowhere near as strong as from eating them. Lesson learned.

DaCaptain19:Also watched this show detailing the history (back to pre-history) of drug use. Very eye-opening. For one example, back in the days of Greece, during the age of Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, etc. and during the first formation of what we call democracy, they had to go through a test/ritual called (sp may be poor) the "Elusian Mysteries" where they are believed to have used Ergot. I think the program was called "The Stoned Ages" or something of the sort.

(I haven't seen the program but...) Please tell me this wasn't on the History channel. If it was, then pay close attention to the wording. THC tends to use a lot of modifiers and sketchy phrases to pass on ideas as facts.

They just had a story on the news (which may be B.S.) about the FDA studying those 5-hour energy drinks, stating that they were a factor in 13 deaths, recently.

That's 13 more deaths than marijuana has been implicated in.

Also watched this show detailing the history (back to pre-history) of drug use. Very eye-opening. For one example, back in the days of Greece, during the age of Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, etc. and during the first formation of what we call democracy, they had to go through a test/ritual called (sp may be poor) the "Elusian Mysteries" where they are believed to have used Ergot. I think the program was called "The Stoned Ages" or something of the sort.

According to the program, the worlds first drug laws were instituted by Christians prior to the Roman takeover - said Christians during the crusades did not want people to satisfy "spiritual quests" via anything but their church.

So it would appear that pot has less of a social cost than caffeine. Certainly there is no disagreement that the social costs of tobacco and alcohol are magnitudes above that of pot, cocaine, heroin, or even meth.

I quit smoking pot involuntarily a week ago after 35 years. I was up to buying $1000/mo and my finances cannot support that right now. My deep REM sleep has been so suppressed that I haven't dremt in years. A coupla mornings ago I had my first dream in ages. But it was a nightmare. I was being busted by the feds, and their attitude wasn't rage but amused contempt. It was very detailed and awful.

Very mild withdrawal symptoms, some depression, some suicidal ideation, but nothing too bad. I'm better now and reequilibrated, happy as ever now.

I've known people who smoke pot every day. They were just about worthless for anything. I've known people who drink everyday. They too were about worthless for anything. If you are getting intoxicated every day you have an issue.

I can but a bottle of whiskey legally, I can get drunk in a bar legally. Why can't I purchase a "joint" to smoke in my own home legally?

Now, there are four states of being in the cannabis, or marijuana,society:Cool, Groovy, Hip, and Square.The square is seldom if ever cool. He is not "with it,"that is, he doesn't know "what's happening."But if he manages to figure it out, he moves up a notch to "hip."And if he can bring himself to approve of what is happening, he becomes "groovy."After that, with much luck and perseverance, he can rise to the rank of "cool."A cool guy...

That's sort of the point that I came here to make. A lot of the people who I know who are psychologically dependent on marijuana would just turn to something else to self-medicate themselves. I bet alcohol would be their next choice.